Letting Go A Final Parting
by TwigTalent
Summary: Tonight was her last night on Asgard, Loki knows that it is her fate, but the words of the Norns cannot compare to that of a father's bond with his child, especially if that child is to face Death itself and is his only daughter. But before that, they have one final goodbye. Hela


Loki frowned at his father's suggestion as he continued to kneel, his mind still working out the abruptness of Odin's words.

"You think she be ready? You think she is ready for this now? Tonight?" Loki asked with genuine surprise, receiving a nod from Odin. "Father, she is but a child." His voice broke with concern.

The All-Father held a serious but understanding look. "She is ready and of age. The Norns have predicted this; you need not worry about her fate."

Loki clasped his eyes shut and stifled a cry. "She barely has the look of a Midgardian of sixteen; Death will not be kind to her."

With that, Odin stepped down from the throne and walked to his now broken son, setting a hand on his shoulder to give a comforting squeeze.

"Be happy for her, my son."

With that, Loki felt Odin's hand slide from his shoulder as the old man's slow footsteps became fainter and fainter as he exited the hall.

Even with his father's words, Loki felt his heart crack inside of him.

_**~-~-~-Goodbye-~-~-~**_

Walking slow and silently down the hall, Loki couldn't bear to look at the young girl he held the hand of as he began to escort her to the Bifrost, wearing his armour and her in a dress as dark and weightless as ash. With hair as black as night twisting itself to her waist, eyes of deep jade, and skin so pale, it shone in the moonlight, there was no doubt that she was his daughter, and tonight he would have to let her go.

"Father, where are we going?"

He couldn't even speak; the words to tell her what was happening did not come. But there was so much he wanted to say, so much he wanted to tell her and hold her tight while she listened to him. Time, however, was short. Extremely short. Instead, his lips remained parted as air trickled in and out in deep breaths as they neared the palace doors.

"Father?" She tugged at his arm, trying to break him out of his trance with the floor as they came to a stop. "What's troubling you?" She asked again, looking at him conspicuously as he stared at the Bifrost's pathway with watery eyes.

Silence stilled at air until Loki finally found his voice, broken but a voice.

"I love you, sweetheart." The words came out in a breath, trying hard not to stumble over each other.

Candles flickered as Loki slowly brought his gaze to his daughter, putting a hand against her cheek and looking into her confused eyes while he held back tears. "I love you so much, Hela. And you know that I have and will always think on you every day."

Hela stood there, staring at her father with a searching look for a moment, trying to find an answer in her father's half-faltering face. Carrying her eyes from his face, she took a wary glance to the Bifrost, in which Loki let out a breath of sadness. Though young, she was just as wise as her father.

"I will not be returning to the palace tonight," She said, turning back to Loki. "Will I, father?"

Shaking his head, he took his daughter into his arms, holding her close and imprinting her lavender scent into his memories as a tear raced quietly down her cheek.

Burying her face into his chest, Hela's voice reverted back into one Loki had only heard from her as a child, driving him into even more despair. "Was it grandfather's decision?"

Loki nodded into her hair. "Yes." He swallowed, not wanting to loosen his arms in the slightest, not wanting to let her go.

Hela shook her head hard against her father's close body. "But I don't want to leave you, papa." She whispered, tears flowing down her face.

Prying his arms off her, Loki knelt down and brushed her tears away with his thumb as he held one hand against her cheek and the other sat upon her shoulder. "It's alright, love. I'll be fine. I promise. But you need to be brave, sweetheart. You have to be as brave as you can tonight."

Lips shaking and barely able to make words, Hela shook her head, lines streaking her face. "Papa," She cried softly. "Must we say goodbye now? It's too hard, you're my father. We should never have to part in a way such as this."

Pulling her back into his grasp, Loki ran his finger through her hair, whispering comforts into her ear so softly, because they were and only hers to hear. Watery green eyes grazed the floor and fell upon the feet of his own father. Standing, watching, waiting.

Turning away from the watchful elder, Loki turned his daughter, who was shaking in her father's arms, and nudged her forward with his arms around her, bringing Hela a regretful step forward and onto the quartz path of the Bifrost. "We can do it later, Hela. But we must move."

Nodding, Hela looped her arm through her father's, and they walked together for possibly the last time as father and daughter. Thor and Odin followed behind them, watching closely to ensure that Loki's antics do not interfere with the journey.

As they approached the Bifrost, Heimdall standing in the distance, Hela bit her lip. "Which realm is it that I am travelling to tonight?" She asked with an edge of reasonable fear in her voice.

Trying to keep a pained expression of his face, Loki hesitated before answering the young goddess. "Niflheim." Hela released startled breath. "You are to go to Niflheim and meet with Death to make a pact that you will not be able to die. For you are to be the Goddess of Death, Hela. You are going to be a Queen, my dearest daughter."

Her eyes widened in shock, happiness, and fear, fear was evident at the idea of facing Death itself, and to be the Goddess of it. The daughter of the God of Mischief was destined to be the ruler of Hel. But despite the night and tears being shed, Hela smiled genuinely, lifting Loki's heart.

"I am so proud of you, Hela." He told her with a matching smile, reaching out and touching her head and letting his fingers trail down her silky hair as a silver head band began to materialise, metal strands weaving around each other like the branches of Yggdrasil. She looked like the young lady she was, no longer the little child at his waist, but the girl standing to his shoulders.

With the same poise as her father, Hela raised her eyebrows in a caring but analytic way. "Will we ever reunite later in time without the path of death, father?"

He paused for a quick moment, having not thought about that particular manner beforehand. Then his face brightened hopefully. "Do you remember that exercise in which you separated your consciousness from your body?"

"Projection?"

"Yes," Loki was happy for his daughter's quick mind and knew that it would, like his, never fade. "And remember my telling of how you can project yourself across realms?"

With a gentle smile rising, Hela pushed a strand of twisted, long, black hair back behind her ear and looked at her father.

_Of course I do, father._ Her voice chuckled in his mind. "But you must make a promise before I leave." She said aloud.

"And what would that be?"

Happy with her father's full attention, she pointed at herself. "If I am to be Ruler of the Dead, you are to be King." She finished, pointing a thin finger at Loki, and open up her palm to him to shake. "Promise?"

"I promise." He replied, taking her hand and pulled her in for one last embrace. "Now go say goodbye to you uncle." He whispered, not wanting his brother to be left out of Hela's last moments as an unnamed immortal.

"Yes father." She said curtly, and turned out of her father's arms and dipped her head to the side at the site of Thor, who marched up and wrapped his arms around her thin body in a tight hug. Odin continued to walk towards Heimdall, passing Loki with another comforting squeeze of the shoulder.

"Oh, Hela," Thor boomed, but at a reasonable tone for the young lady's ears. "How you will be missed in Asgard."

"And you will be missed as well, Thor. Missed by me. I hope to see you and my father again beneath circumstances that are not death." She said in her usual sweet tone, despite the subject.

Thor chuckled, and put a large hand upon her shoulder. "You have grown to a fine young lady; many would be down to their knees, begging for such timeless youth as yours. To have even half of your face would be a blessing."

Hela blushed shyly. "You tell such a lie like my father would."

"My niece, I speak no lie, only truth." The man of thunder spoke gently and kissed her forehead. "Goodbye."

Feel her eyes beginning to water; she did her last bow to the God, seeing the energy surging within the pathway. "Goodbye, Thor. I wish you well in life."

Turning to face the Bifrost, Hela took a deep breath towards her father and took his arm, and the two marched on, tears already spilled from before, they only needed to say one last thing. But neither of them spoke when they entered the golden sphere holding Odin, Heimdall, and now, the last three. Unlooping her arm from Loki's, she took a step forward to meet Odin's gaze.

The Allfather's face showed neither happiness nor sorrow, just the look of a ruler of the Nine Realms. "Hela Lokadottir, you are hereby appointed to rule as a Goddess of Death over the realms of Niflheim and Hel. They will soon be in your care for you have shown to have a great mastery in judgment, in which no one else is as fitted for such a title as this. However, in order to fulfill your duties as the Goddess Hela, you are to face Death itself so that you may manage it. Do you, Hela Lokadottir, accept the responsibilities of your title?"

"I accept them, Odin Allfather. And I pledge allegiance to fulfill my duties as the ruler of those realms."

Odin's lip twitched upward in approval and he carried himself down the stairs of the Bifrost's pedestal, pulling out a black cloak and handed it to Loki, who took it hesitantly. "With I and your father's enchantments, let this cloak, sewn by Frigga herself, give you strength, magic, and keep you as young as you are at this moment, so that you rule as a Goddess of Death to the best of your abilities. Let you be shaded by your own blood."

Hale watched as Loki waved his hand carefully over the midnight fabric and carefully brought a knife to his palm and pressed it against the cloak. Closing his eyes, the God to a deep breath as he paled a shade, murmuring Norse as his daughter observed with slight horror as she noticed that her cloak was drinking her father's blood until her removed his grey hand and waved it gently, healing it. Opening his eyes in relief, he inspected the cloak and nodded curtly. Looking at Hela, he marched to her and kneeled to her and presented the cloak that would protect her, dipping his head to the ground so that he did not meet her eyes. Hesitantly, Hela took it.

"One this night, I proclaim you the Goddess Hela, ruler of Hel and Niflheim. May you act well in your deal with Death tonight, my dearest grand-daughter. All of Asgard wishes you well." And everyone, except Odin, fell to their knees in celebration, Hela stood in awe as her father rose from his stance and placed a hand on her shoulder, a smile on his face, but sorrow and worry showed in his eyes.

"Goddess Hela," Heimdall spoke calmly from his place on the Bifrost's pedestal. "It is time."

Hela nodded. "Thank you, Heimdall."

Putting a hand over his daughter's shoulder, Loki led her to the portal of the Bifrost as Heimdall lowered his sword into its base, causing the sphere to begin spinning.

"This goodbye, my darling girl, my Goddess." Loki breathed as he looked at her and tied the cloak to her neck, its shape and color going well with her black dress that now fluttered in the air with the cloak, the Bifrost growing in power.

She swallowed and looked at the gateway of growing colors. "It may be, but I fear that I may not be able to part just yet, though I know I must."

Cradling her cheek, Loki gave her a supportive look. "You can and you will. You are my daughter, giving up is not in your blood."

Letting her head tilt into his soft touch, she pressed her blood-red lips to his wrist and took a deep breath as he stepped away from her. "Goodbye, father!" She called as the Bifrost grew in power.

Wanting to run back, Loki looked at Thor with a pained expression, who put a hand on his younger brother's shoulder so that the action did not happen. "Goodbye!" He called back, as she turned her back on him, preparing for the journey.

"Remember!" She called, the air travelling faster and faster. "You made a promise to me!" Loki let out a breathless laugh. "You must keep it!"

Even though he knew that she couldn't see him, he nodded back with as much emotion he could manage. "I promise."

Looking gracefully over her shoulder, Hela's green eyes met her father's, she gave a small smile just as Heimdall pushed his sword the rest of the way to initiate the journey.

"I love you, papa."

And at that moment, she was gone; the energy pulled her into its powerful current, taking her away from her father, who finally allowed a tear to fall from his eyes now that the one thing he truly loved and honored was gone for, possibly, the rest of his life.

Even now as the God of Lies, Chaos, Deceit, and Trickery lives on; he has always urged on to fulfill his promise to his daughter, even if it means to face battles that are almost hopeless; nothing will ever break the father's undying love to his only daughter.

Hela.

_Author's Note:__ I had this image of Loki and Hela in my head, having to say goodbye because she had to go and make a deal with Death in order to rule as the Goddess of Death, despite being so young. And I thought that it would have had to be a really tough parting when Hela left Asgard. Loki must've loved his daughter dearly, and knowing Odin, he would make the parting sudden so that Loki didn't have time to interfere with the Norn's prophecies. Hopefully you enjoyed it since you're reading this. Reviews are much appreciated. Thank you!_


End file.
